


Stitch Together the Sky and Earth

by victoriousscarf



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2016-01-02
Packaged: 2018-05-11 03:16:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5611891
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/victoriousscarf/pseuds/victoriousscarf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Isn't that yours?” his fellow pilot asked after a beat. “You were so proud of that stupid thing—weren't you?”</p><p>“Gave it to him,” Poe said, distracted, and the jacket was barely held together. The collar was intact, but all down where Finn's spine would have been was a long cut, slicing the fabric in half and leaving burned edges.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stitch Together the Sky and Earth

**Author's Note:**

> Well, it had to happen at some point.
> 
> I just wanted the jacket to survive okay everything here came from that

The medical droid shooed Poe out of sick bay, tittering something he barely paid attention to. “Look, can I at least get his effects? You know, clothes and stuff?”

 

The droid told him to come back later and he did. That time he was handed the pitiful pile of clothing that made up everything Finn owned and was even allowed to sit next to him for a while. When he returned to his bunk, he considered the clothing in turn.

 

“Most of that should be tossed out, you know,” Jessika said, leaning against the doorway.

 

“It's all he has, I'm not getting rid of any of it before he wakes up,” Poe said and paused, holding up the jacket he had worn to Jakku.

 

“Isn't that yours?” his fellow pilot asked after a beat. “You were so proud of that stupid thing—weren't you?”

 

“Gave it to him,” Poe said, distracted, and the jacket was barely held together. The collar was intact, but all down where Finn's spine would have been was a long cut, slicing the fabric in half and leaving burned edges.

 

“You think he's gonna be okay?” Jessika asked, after they had both stared at it too long.

 

“Yeah,” Poe said because no other answer was actually acceptable to him.

 

But he kept staring at the long scar down the jacket, rendering it effectively useless.

 

-0-

 

When Finn woke up, Poe was halfway across the galaxy. But luckily enough, he came roaring back into base in short order, one of the technicians who had calmly woken him up when he fell asleep next to Finn waiting for him with the news.

 

“You should probably go see him,” she said, and she was smiling at him as he laughed and ran past, not even caring he had just come back from a mission and stank of sweat and oil. Finn didn't seem to care either when he saw him clank through the door.

 

“Poe?” he asked and Poe was laughing as he sank down to his knees beside Finn.

 

“Hey, buddy,” he said and Finn was smiling too, tired as he reached a hand out as if he was the one who had to make sure Poe was really there. “Good to see you.”

 

“Hear that's something you've been doing a lot,” Finn said and there was something hesitant in his voice.

 

Poe shrugged it off. “Okay, point. Good to see you awake.” He plucked Finn's hand out of the air and held it.

 

Finn tried to tighten his grip on Poe's hand, fingers too shaky. “Good to be awake.”

 

“Yeah,” Poe said. “Yeah it probably is, huh?”

 

-0-

 

Ello Asty was staring at Poe across the table.

 

“Do I have some food on my face?” he asked finally.

 

“I think you have someone who would like to be on your face,” his fellow pilot said after a beat. Poe stared at him, with his spoon stopped halfway to his mouth as Jessika tried to stifle a laugh behind her hands.

 

“Excuse me?” Poe asked.

 

“He's just being his usual self,” Jessika said when she could breath.

 

“You know he wrote down your last name on the paperwork, right, Dameron?”

 

“Did he?” Poe asked, because the war waited for no one, and he had spent less time in the sick bay than he wanted. He knew Finn was recovering each day, walking further and getting stronger. He thought he was going to be released to quarters soon, and realized all at once that had probably already happened.

 

“Oh no,” Asty said, looking at Jessika. “They're going to be oblivious and pathetic, aren't they?”

 

She gave up then, burying her face on the table and cackling.

 

“I miss Karé already,” Poe decided. “She's coming back soon, right?”

 

“Next week,” Jessika said from where her head was still on the table.

 

“Do you think they'll figure it out before or after that?” Asty asked and Poe lifted his tray as he stood up.

 

“If you folks will excuse me,” he said. “I have someone to visit.”

 

Asty opened his mouth, considered it, and just smiled his strange smile at Poe. “Of course you do,” he said and Poe rolled his eyes as he walked away. He grabbed a couple protein packets on his way out the door before heading to his quarters to pick up the tiny bundle of everything Finn owned before going to find him.

 

“Hey there, Finn,” he said, after Finn opened the door at his knock. “Good to see you up and around.”

 

Finn's face lit up and Poe could feel his stomach turn over. “You're back.”

 

“Yeah, that happens sometimes,” Poe said, grinning. “Can I come in or...?”

 

“Or what?” Finn asked.

 

“Just don't know what you'd be comfortable with,” Poe said.

 

“Oh, come in,” Finn said, awkwardly still standing at the door before he seemed to figure out he had to step back first. He gestured and Poe carefully kept his expression open and relaxed as he looked around.

 

“Not bad,” he said.

 

“There's nothing in here,” Finn said, and looked caught between embarrassed and like he was comfortable with that and didn't want to be.

 

“Right,” Poe said and held up his bundle. “Look, it's much of—anything really, and if you don't want to be reminded or anything, I totally get that, but I snagged these from the med droid and since it was all you had so far, I kept it safe for you.”

 

Finn's eyes lit up again and he pulled the jacket up first, his fingers wrapping around the material reverently. “Your jacket,” he said, and there was something about the way he was holding it that broke Poe's heart. But then Finn picked it up and stared at it. “Ah,” he said, seeing the long slice down the back. “That's what you meant, about being reminded.”

 

“Yeah,” Poe said.

 

“I'm sorry,” Finn started and Poe frowned. “For destroying you—”

 

“I gave it to you,” Poe said firmly, even if he hadn't meant to originally.

 

“Destroying your gift then,” Finn said and he was looking at Poe with wide eyes.

 

Poe's fingers curled and uncurled and he repeated everything he had told himself, about giving Finn space, time to figure out who he was and what he wanted. To show Finn anything he wanted without putting any pressure on him, or letting his own desires sway Finn. “Actually,” he said, casual. “I have any idea about that. If you want, I mean.”

 

“Okay,” Finn said, meeting his eyes and smiling, like he trusted whatever idea Poe would have.

 

-0-

 

“Well, it still fits,” Poe said and tried not to grin too widely. Jessika was shaking her head at him again, and Finn rolled his shoulders, testing out the jacket.

 

“Yeah,” he agreed and turned, throwing his arms around Poe before Poe could react one way or another, burying his nose in Poe's shoulder. “Thank you.”

 

“Hey,” Poe said, sliding his arms around Finn, his fingers brushing the leather lacing that criss-crossed the back of the jacket now, knitting the burned edges back together. It looked something like a lumpy mess but Finn had laughed when he first saw it.

 

“Just like my back,” he said and Poe had only grinned at him because he felt a little faint.

 

“Thank you,” Finn said now, and Poe's fingers were twisted up in the jacket.

 

“Hey, you survived, why not the jacket too?” he asked, trying not to think about how much he liked seeing Finn in it, or Finn's devotion to it.

 

It's just an object, he reminded himself again.

 

-0-

 

Finn got stares from everyone and Poe thought it wasn't entirely arrogant to think that at least part of it had to do with the coat. Wearing it might as well have been a badge or a sign that he had endured a lightsaber strike and survived.

 

“You look pretty bad ass wearing that,” he said, sitting with his back to a table, arms slung along the edges of it.

 

Finn laughed, caught between pride and embarrassment. “I'm still trying to figure out why everyone stares at me the _most_.”

 

“The most?” Poe asked.

 

“You know at least three people have recognized this as yours?” Finn asked and Poe choked on air.

 

“Really?”

 

“Yeah,” Finn said. “Seems like it was your favorite.”

 

“Sure,” Poe agreed. “It was.”

 

“You not only gave me your favorite jacket, you made sure I wouldn't lose it,” Finn said and he was staring at Poe again, that wide eyed look.

 

“Well, you looked good in it,” Poe said. “And now you look good and bad ass. You deserve that.”

 

“Yeah?” Finn asked.

 

“Yeah,” Poe confirmed and then his mouth kept running. “You know, I heard you wrote down my name on your exit paperwork. From sick bay I mean.”

 

“Yeah,” Finn said, looking away suddenly.

 

“That might also be why people are staring,” Poe said.

 

“Yeah?” Finn asked.

 

“Most people only take someone's last name when they get married,” Poe said and Finn stared at him.

 

“I,” he stammered and his eyes were huge. “I mean, that's not, I didn't mean to insult you or—it was just all I could think of and I though that—”

 

“I don't mind,” Poe cut in, because he _didn't_ and this was not the reaction he had meant to incur. “I just wanted to explain that maybe people were assuming—”

 

“That we're together?” Finn asked and he was looking at him again, less panicked and eyes warm. Poe had to twitch his shoulders to shake himself out of staring. “Because I took your last name?”

 

“Yeah,” Poe said. “The jacket, the name, I think people are assuming.”

 

“Is it a bad assumption?” Finn asked when they just stared at each other for too long.

 

“Uh,” Poe blinked. “What? No. I mean, I don't think so, but you might disagree I don't really know how that works in the First Order—”

 

“It's not, I mean, that doesn't matter,” Finn dismissed, as if shrugging off all those years of control meant nothing. “I don't mind either. The assumption, I mean.”

 

“Yeah?” Poe repeated, too much weight on that one word.

 

“Yeah,” Finn agreed and Poe clenched his fists to make sure his hands didn't wander anywhere they weren't supposed to. “It's not a bad assumption.”

 

“It,” Poe blinked. “Us being together isn't a bad assumption to make?”

 

For a second they wavered, hovering on the edge of what they said.

 

Poe would never figure out if he leaned forward first, if Finn just let himself fall, or if they moved at the same time but he had his tongue in Finn's mouth and his fingers were clutching at the back of the jacket, feeling the rough mess at the back, the slightly different texture of the burn and the leather holding the whole thing together.

 

“Yeah, okay, I wanted that,” Finn said, pulling away, and his eyes were glazed as he stroked his fingers along Poe's cheeks, as if he couldn't quite believe it.

 

To be honest, Poe didn't, so he understood the sentiment. He twitched his head into the warmth of Finn's fingers and that time it was definitely Finn who moved first, slamming their mouths together sloppily, and Poe laughed into the kiss because it felt like flying did.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> (Okay so I went and saw tfa again today and apparently I totally forgot Ello died in the trench run BUT it also looked like he was standing there slapping another alien on the back during the scene where Rey takes off?? so??? Whatever I guess?)


End file.
